Cooper Tire signs as British F3 International title sponsor

Cooper Tire has been announced as the new tyre supplier and title sponsor of the prestigious British F3 International Series for the 2009 season.

The US tyre manufacturer takes over the role held for 25 years by Avon Tyres, a brand owned and manufactured by Cooper Tire & Rubber Company.

Cooper won the contract by defeating competition from several other tyre manufacturers, and will headline British F3 for three years, until the end of 2011.

The British Formula 3 series, widely acknowledged as the toughest domestic single-seater championship in the world, has produced champions and future Formula 1 stars such as David Coulthard, Jenson Button, Rubens Barrichello, Mika Hakkinen and Ayrton Senna.

“Through our many years in British F3 with the Avon brand, we know that it is a genuine stepping stone of great drivers on the way to F1, and therefore requires the very best components in every area,” explains Julian Baldwin, managing director of Cooper Tire Europe.

“Avon Tyres is very well established in British and European motor racing and, as Cooper Tire grows as a brand in Europe, we want it to stand for the same standard of quality. Cooper’s racing tyres deserve to be allied with a high-profile championship in Europe and you don’t get much bigger than British F3.”

Cooper Tire already has an established reputation in US motorsport, where it is title sponsor and sole supplier to the Atlantic Championship series, a premier open wheel development series for both open wheel and sports car racing.

The calendar for the 2009 Cooper Tire British F3 International Series will be announced by organisers, SRO, in coming months.

ENDS

For further information, please contact:

Andy Bothwell Paul Rayner

T: 0208 541 3434 T: 0208 541 3434

M: 07825 703505 M: 07929 344082

E: andyb@performancepr.com E:paul@performancepr.com

Notes to Editors

Cooper Tire & Rubber Company Europe Ltd, a subsidiary of the Cooper Tire & Rubber Company of Findlay, Ohio, USA, has more than a century’s experience at the leading edge of tyre technology. Cooper produces a full range of tyres for passenger car and 4x4 applications under the Cooper and Avon brand names, together with Avon motorcycle tyres.

Avon motorsport tyres are supplied to over 140 championships around the world, including the Avon Tyres British GT Championship and the British F3 International Series, as well as series supported by Audi, Ford, Porsche and Honda.